


Dietary Needs

by Kamary



Series: The Jersey Devil [6]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Fantastic Racism, Grocery Shopping, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Multi, Other, Panic Attacks, Years Later, polymory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-18
Updated: 2015-11-18
Packaged: 2018-05-02 07:03:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5238926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kamary/pseuds/Kamary
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Even humans could make food that healed injuries when they were making partial monster food. It was a huge hit in hospitals, since magic was a lost art to humans. However, few were willing to come to monster stores, like you, so this was a safe space. Or, at least, it had been a safe space until today.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dietary Needs

**Author's Note:**

> Why must Chara suffer?

You didn’t like to be out in public. Even grocery shopping was a tiring task for you. You were very lucky you lived in a neighbourhood mostly populated with monsters (despite being ‘welcomed’ into the world of humans, most preferred to stay close to others of their kind). You could only manage to go to the grocery store if there were few humans there, so you were lucky that there was a monster food specialty store nearby. There were other benefits in visiting a monster grocery store though.

Monsters, as you had learned, were masters of adaption. You attributed some of that to the fact they were a magical race. Magic was the element of freedom. It was so rarely conformed to one shape. It could be fire magic one moment and ice magic the next. You were absolutely fascinated by it, and were glad that you were now a magic creature too. It was a same you had only a human’s understanding of the world though. No, not a human, a demon.

Every bit of research on your new nature told you that you should be able to use magic. You should be able to become a fuzzy goat monster like your boyfriend and throw fire around like it was nothing. Yet, you were constrained by your nature. It wasn’t your fault, others had said. You were raised in an extremely strict environment. Humans were ridged, inflexible race. When a breeze faced a mountain, the mountain lost. It was one of the reasons humans were so dangerous to monsters. A monster’s flexible nature made it very hard for them to gather LOVE. You, who had been raised human in an even stricter environment that most humans, were mentally too inflexible to be able to cast magic, you were told.

Still, that didn’t stop you from trying. You might not be able to cast big spells like the rest of your family, but at the very least you could learn how to prepare proper monster food. However, monster food was special. It wasn’t just the ingredients that were special, it was the process of making it too. Even if you just cooked it on the stove, your creatively and love went into the recipe (or it should if you weren’t such a muggle), making it truly magical. What you cooked currently was only half monster food, the type that any human could make.

Monster ingredients looked pretty much like other food. They had tomatoes and vegetables, just like they did in human stores. They were very different though. Monster food was made partially, or completely out of magic. It was the only way to continue to feed themselves in the underground (the humans had pretty much starved them out). To raise herds of livestock, you needed plants. To grow plants, you needed sunlight. Monster had very little sunlight, so they had to substitute with magic. The few seeds they had brought with them were nurtured with magic until they grew it to a bountiful harvest. After generations of growing plants this way, they were dependant on magic, more so than even water, to survive, and in turn, also carried all the benefits of said magic.

Even humans could make food that healed injuries when they were making partial monster food. It was a huge hit in hospitals, since magic was a lost art to humans. However, few were willing to come to monster stores, like you, so this was a safe space. Or, at least, it had been a safe space until today.

You had been doing your thing, gathering ingredients for the next week of meals. You were pilling obscene amounts of pasta in your cart (Papyrus visited all the time so it was always best to have the ingredients for his signature dish on hand. If you didn’t, he insisted that he, the great Papyrus, would simple have to make the noodles instead. It only happened once. You spent the next several days scraping bits of egg and flour off of your walls) when you heard a clacking sound. Assuming it was just another monster, you had continued on your way, when suddenly you were tapped on the shoulder.

You let out a loud hissing sound (a bad habit that had Frisk calling you Catara for a week) and whipped around to face the challenge. Your reaction was immediate. It wasn’t a monster that tapped you, but a human. She was in her late fifties, maybe fifties. She smiled, like she was friendly, but you were not buying that. You couldn’t buy that! Smiling faces were not friendly. They smiled when they wanted something from you or to trick you. Smiles hid the true nature of people from the world, made them think they were a reliable mother or father, or a good classmate, or a kind teacher, or a kind stranger on the bus. You’d learned long ago not to trust such smiles.

“Oh, what a handsome young man,” the lady spoke, causing you to flinch because _you were not a young man._ “You’re awfully young to be on a diet, don’t you think? Oh, you must be picking it up for your mother. What a nice young man. It is nice to see another human in these stores. I don’t much like these monsters, but their food does wonders for the body-“

She probably said something else after that, but your ears felt like they were filled with candle wax. Your vision was darkening as well. It felt like all of the lights went out. You could still see some things, but they were very vague. Among these vague things was the image of the woman coming towards you. What could she do to you? She was an old lady who likely had never fought a day in her life, and you were the demon that once destroyed the world. And yet your heart beat horribly fast. You reached to cover your face.

“ _Stay away from me!_ ” Your voice sounded like you were talking through water.

You stumbled away from her and hit something solid. You yelped as hard things began to rain down on your head, arms, and back. It hurt. You knew it, knew it, knew it! Humans were going to hurt you! Yet, you couldn’t do anything to fight back. You didn’t have someone strong with you. When it was you and Asriel, you felt angry and strong, but alone you could only cower.

You barely noticed a flash of lights, but it just caused you to close your eyes, expecting pain. You let out a pathetic whine and waited for the rest of the blows. There was something dripping down your face. You assumed it to be tears (but that wasn’t definite since you occasionally leaked an ink like fluid from your eyes and mouth when you were extremely upset). Moments passed (or minutes, you lost your concept of time when panicking, it felt like hours) and you weren’t hurt. Had you scared your attacker off? Slowly, sound and like returned to the world, but your body was not yet calm. Your face flushed like it was way too hot in here.

When you opened your eyes, she was gone. In her place was a broken piece of bone, hidden amongst the cans you knocked over earlier. You thought to question it, but your mind was still too unfocused. Instead, you turned to your object of comfort. You reached into your pocket and grabbed your cellphone. Heading into the group conversation with your datefriends, you typed away.

“VCLME GET NE”

Come get me.

You didn’t know how, but they always knew where you were. They always managed to find you in a matter of minutes. But, you were worried. Frisk often times had to turn off their phone during work, especially when dealing with sensitive issues. Asriel always answered right away, but you worried he wouldn’t. You had been doing so well. You hadn’t had an incident in three months, a new record for you. What if, for once, his phone wasn’t on or wasn’t inches from his hand at all times. You were horrified by the thought of this.

Almost as soon as this thought formed, you heard the sound of click clacking on the floor. You flinched, assuming that the woman was back, but the sound was different, familiar. Like the sound of your own heartbeat, you knew this sound to be friendly. Instinctively, you loosened yourself from your little ball and reached out to the source of the sound.

“Chara!” Asriel had you wrapped up in a tight hug within moments of seeing you. You hugged back, burying your face into his soft fur and tucking yourself under one of his ears. It was safe and warm here. You were so, so glad that Asriel was here. You heard a second pair of footsteps and looked up like a cat hearing the bag of treats being shaken. You expected Frisk. Instead you got Sans.

He gave you a lazy wave, but said nothing. Your eyes did not meet. Neither of you could make eye contact with the other. Only Sans knew the things you’d done. Even Frisk was in willful denial. Only Sans could still judge you. You felt a twist of panic in your gut, but Asriel’s soft arms around you helped sooth you back into a state of peace.

“I knew that you shouldn’t have come out here. I’m so so sorry this happened…! If I hadn’t needed some more tea…!” Of course Asriel blames himself. He takes the weight of the world onto his shoulders. You wouldn’t allow that though. You gently bite him on the ear. It would have to substitute for the normal horn tugs you gave him whenever he did these sort of things. If you had to protect him from himself, it kept you from panicking over yourself (he had so much more worth than you).

“I needed pasta anyway…” Your voice was a horse whisper. How laugh had you yelled before if your throat already burned. “You got here fast, that’s what matters.”

“Thank goodness Sans knew a short cut…” Asriel wouldn’t take the praise, not for a second. Still, his words brought up something important.

The bone on the floor, the flash of light, the fact Sans was so easy for Asriel to find. You pieced it together easily. You always knew Sans was tailing you.

You met the skeleton’s eyes for a moment, and there was the slightest hint of warmness before you both looked away. It wasn’t warmness for you. Most likely it was for Toriel. She was your mother and his love. Of course he would care for her child, even if he hated you, but just for this instant, you wanted to belief that you were safe and wanted here, by everyone.

“Asriel,” you muttered. “Can you help me pick up the cans? I-I must have knocked them over.”

Asriel shook his head, tickling you with his fur. “No way, Char, you’re not doing anything but walking home. …Can you walk home?”

You nodded and attempted to get to your feet but your legs bowed like you were some kind of baby deer and you slipped back down onto the ground.

“That’s alright, I can carry you.” Asriel proceeded to carefully lift you, slow motions as to not panic you further. “Frisk can pick up groceries on their way home, okay?”

You buried your face into his neck. “I… Can’t even do my own damn shopping, can I?”

“What are you talking about?” He pulled you closer to his chest. “You barely panicked at all. I remember back in the days when you would trash the whole store. You’re doing well. You’re getting better. Besides…” He placed a kiss on your forehead. “Don’t tell Frisk and their stupid swear jar, but the cashier told me that lady’s a real bitch. And… She’s buying our groceries. She and Sans… Talked.”

You almost felt well enough to laugh at that. The thought of blackmailing a racist old lady filled you with determination.


End file.
